Page 167 of Share with Me

Chapter Fifty-Two

“‘Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?’” Yun read Matthew 18:21 in her clear voice.

Brinley wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear that. She wanted to be mad at Ivan.

“It’s not natural for us humans to forgive. But it’s supernatural for us to do so,” Yun added. “If we are in Christ, God gives us the grace to forgive.”

“I want to slap him.”

“Me too, Brinley. Me too. That boy needs a spanking.”

Boy?Ivan was thirty. “Sure behaves like he does.”

“You and I know that, but he has to learn it the hard way. Give him time.”

How much time?Brinley sighed. “More tea?”

“Yes, please.”

Brinley poured more chai. “I’m glad we can continue to have our tea time.”

“I hate sneaking around Ivan, but it’s the only way to get here.”

“I can send Cara to pick you up anytime, you know,” Brinley said. “No need to get a ride from someone else.”

“Oh, they’re happy to do it. Don’t worry.” Yun sipped tea with delicate hands on the china cup.

Brinley was enjoying her chai too. They were sitting in her newly painted heated sunroom where the winter sun shone in but the cold stayed out. Outside the sunroom, the day was bright and the sky a swath of blue and white. The distant surf sounded muffled this afternoon.

Inside the room, boxes were everywhere. The furniture pieces had arrived from her Atlanta home, and some were still sitting in the trailer parked outside the house. For now, Brinley had an armchair and a love seat, the latter of which she had offered to Yun.

“I’m thinking of selling my Victoria upright,” Yun announced.

“Are you serious? Why?”

“I’m going to be ninety-eight next month.” Yun brushed invisible lint off her wool dress. “I’ve had the piano long enough. It’s someone else’s turn to play it now.”

Brinley knew there were more reasons than that. Perhaps Ivan’s being out of work had something to do with it. And the mortgages Yun had accidentally mentioned back in December. The situation was terrible, but there was nothing she could do about it without stepping on Ivan’s dignity in the whole matter.

Yeah, and then she went and destroyed his entire livelihood by giving him what she had thought he wanted: a Stradivarius.

“Do you happen to know someone who might want to buy it?” Yun asked earnestly.

Me! Me! I like old things, remember?

“Well, how much are you selling it for?” Nonchalant-like.

“The last appraisal said it was worth twenty-six thousand. I’ll sell it for twenty if I can get a quick sale.”

“Let me ask an appraiser friend of mine to see if he can give you better numbers.” Brinley picked up her iPhone and went to work.

Yun sat there, waiting patiently.

Brinley wasn’t sure what was going through Yun’s mind. Had she even talked to Ivan about this? What did Ivan think about the family heirloom being sold?

Her piano appraiser friend texted back. He wasn’t in Savannah. He was out of town for his winter break, and wouldn’t be able to get back to the Georgia coast right away.

No matter. Either way Brinley knew she wanted the Steinway. It would add to her collection of musical things in the vault—

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